Francoise
Feminine · “French woman”
Françoise is the French feminine of François, one of the classic names of France, and two twentieth-century Françoises made it famous far beyond it: a teenager who wrote a bestselling novel in a summer, and a painter who did what no other woman did and left Picasso.
How old is the name Francoise?
Francoise first appears in US birth records in 1917 — 108 years ago. The typical Francoise alive today was born around 1966, making them about 59 years old. About 500 people named Francoise are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Francoise most popular?
Francoise peaked in 1967, reaching #2212 nationally. See the whole 1967 chart.
Where it comes from
From Franciscus to Francoise
The story of Francoise
Françoise Quoirez wrote Bonjour Tristesse at eighteen, published it in 1954 under the pen name Françoise Sagan, borrowed from a character in Proust, and became famous across Europe and America almost overnight. Françoise Gilot, a young painter, lived with Pablo Picasso for ten years and had two children with him; she was the only one of his partners to walk out on him, and in 1964 she told the story in Life with Picasso, which he tried to have suppressed. Françoise came to America with French families and has always been rare there.
Meaning
French woman, feminine of François
François comes from Latin Franciscus, 'Frenchman'.
How the name formed
- Franciscus
- François
- Françoise
Related forms: Françoise · Francesca · Frances · Francisca
Pronouncing Francoise
frahn-SWAHZ
Two syllables with the stress on the second.
Nicknames for Francoise
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1917
- Most girls named
- 196729 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2212reached in 1967
- Change vs 2021
- 0.0%5 in 2023, from 5
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Francoise in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Françoise in French — same name
- Francesca in Italian — same name
- Frances in English — same name
- Francisca in Spanish — same name
Francoises among us
people named Francoise are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Francoise sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- A classic French name with a clear meaning.
- Carries two remarkable modern bearers.
- Rare in America.
- The cedilla is usually lost on forms.
- English speakers may struggle with the pronunciation.
- People will ask whether it is Frances.
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Francoise
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Francoises are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 500 people named Francoise are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Francoise in 2025?
- Francoise is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Francoise with classmates?
- Francoise will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More F names
The most-given names starting with F, all years combined.
Frances#318 · Florence#391 · Faith#254 · Felicia#5554 · Fannie#3342 · Faye#514 · Flora#607 · Freda#6546
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Francoise? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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